Arm guiding means for golf stroke



Dec. 11, 1956 F. E. REDFIELD 2,773,691

ARM GRINDING MEANS FOR GOLF STROKE Filed May 22, 195;

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ARM GRINDING MEANS FOR GOLF STROKE Filed May 22, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR.

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United States Patent ARM GUIDING MEANS FGR GGLF STROKE Frank E.Redfield, Dumont, N. J. Application May 22, 1953, Serial No. 356,688

3 Claims. (Cl. 273-189) This invention relates to improvements in golfstroke guiding devices for golf players, and more particularly relatesto a harness for aiding in guiding one of the elbows of such a player.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a novel armguiding device which is effective during a preselected critical portionof the golf stroke.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel armguiding device for golf players which will prevent the right elbow of arighthanded player or the left elbow of a lefthanded player (referred toas the primary elbow) from being displaced an'irnproper distance fromthe waist during the up and down swings of the stroke.

Another object is to provide an improved golf stroke guiding devicewhich will not restrict arm movement so long as such primary elbow moveswithin a desired swing region. Another object is to provide novel meanstending to enhance and improve the pivoting of the body as a wholeduring the golf stroke.

T he invention, in one aspect thereof, comprises .a novel device forguiding the movement of the uppermost elbow during the golf back-swing(primary elbow). The device includes a belt adapted to encircle thewaist of the player and to which is secured a guide rail which extendssubstantially from the center of the abdomen upwardly and rearwardlyrelative to the waist, the guide rail providing means for guiding atrolley member to which is attached an arm band or loop member whichencircles the right arm of the player just above and close to the elbow,such arm band being secured to the trolley member by a suitable fiexiblecord, such as a light chain. The trolley member is so shaped that it iscompelled to follow the guide rail throughout its length. The guide railat its lower or abdominal extremity may be spaced away from the belt ashort distance, for example, an inch, and the upper extremity is spacedaway from the belt a greater distance, for example in the neighborhoodof 8-10 inches. The lower extremity of the guide rail is substantiallyin a reference plane formed by the longitudinal centerline of the beltwhereas the upper extremity is several inches above such plane. On theup-swing of the golf stroke the primary elbow, if it moves out of adesired swing path, is restricted by action of the trolley member andthe arm band. The angular movement of such elbow to the rear is notrestricted during such up-swing unless such trolley member engages alimit-stop at the upper extremity of the guide rail. The extent of theup-swing may be insufiicient to move the trolley member to suchlimit-stop. The lower or abdominal extremity of the guide rail is freeof such limit-stop whereby on the down-swing, the trolley member mayride off of the guide rail to permit a free and unrestrictedfollow-through of the golf stroke. However, during such down stroke theinterconnected arm band, trolley member and guide rail prevent the elbowfrom moving outwardly beyond its preselected locus within the limits ofthe length of the .guide .rail.

Various, further and more specific objects, features andadvantages ofthe invention will "clearly appear from the detailed description givenbelow taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which form apart of this specification and illustrate, by way of example, preferredarrangements of means for carrying out the invention. The latterconsists in such novel combinations of features as may be shown anddescribed in connection with the devices herein disclosed.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front view of one form of the golf stroke guiding device;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device shown in Fig 1;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially along line 3-3of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of a portion of a guide rail employed inthe embodiment of Fig. 1;

Figs. 5a through 5d, inclusive, illustrate successive positions of thearms of a-golf player wearing the guiding device commencing at or nearthe end of the upswing and terminating at the end of the follow-throughswing;

Fig. 6 is a front view of a modification of the device shown in Fig. l;and

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the modification shown in Fig. -6.

Referring first to Figs. 1-4, the novel golf stroke guiding devicecomprises a belt 10 which is preferably divided into a broad band and anarrow band. The narrow band is indicated at Na and extends from point11 clockwise to point 12. The broad band, as at 10b, extends from point11 counterclockwise to point 13. A belt buckle also is provided. Thebroad band 10b is well illustrated in side view in Fig. l and provides abase upon which is secured a guide rail 14 preferably 'of sheet metal,which, in combination withan arm band 15 and an interconnectedtrolley'member 16, restrains, in apreselected manner, the right arm of a'r ighthanded golf player during a portion of the golf swing. Theembodiment shown in the drawings is adapted for a righthanded player, itbeing understood that a reversal of the parts will adapt same for alefthanded player. The description, however, will be concerned with theguiding of the right arm of a righthanded player.

The guide rail 14 has a lower or abdominal extremity at 14a and an upperextremity at 14b. The lower extremity is referred to as an abdominalextremity because it is normally positioned substantially in the centerof the abdomen of the player, as in Fig. 6. The guide rail 14 (Figs. 1and 2) is secured to the broad band or base 1% in such a way that it canbe pivotally adjusted about a pivot 17. The latter coincidentallycomprises a part of the means for holding the guide rail in spacedrelation from the band 10b, for example, by a sleeve 18, through whichpasses suitable threaded fastening means of a conventional type. Thepivot 17 is spaced from the lower extremity 14a of the guide rail andthe angular position of such rail can be adjusted and secured by meanswell shown in Fig. 3 comprising a spacer finger 19 which, at thelefthand extremity thereof, is secured to the guide rail 14 by asuitable screw 20, the opposite extremity of the spacer finger 19 havingmeans for grasping opposite sides of the broad band 10b of the belt andfor moving angularly within a slot 21. A threaded stud 1% extendsthrough such arcuate slot 21 and is engaged by an adjustment nut 22which is of substantially greater diameter than the width of the slot.

In order adjustably to fix the position of the upper extremity 14b ofthe guide rail 14 relative to the belt, an arm 23 is provided whichpreferably is integral with the guide rail 14 and which is formedrelative thereto insubstantially a V configuration, as viewed in Fig. 2The lower extremity 23a (Fig. 1) of such :arm 23 can be adjust-ablypositioned uponan adjustment plate 24. whicli;

3 is rigidly secured at 25 to the broad band b of the belt.

The adjustment plate 24 extends substantially radially from the belt, asviewed in Fig. 2, and thus extends substantially radially from the waistof the player. It is provided with a plurality of perforations 26through which a threaded bolt 27 extends and by means of a butterfly nut28 threaded thereto secures the extremity 23a firmly but detachablyagainst the adjustment plate 24.

The means for restricting and guiding the motion of the right elbow andright arm comprise: the aforementioned trolley member 16 which is wellshown in Fig. 3, the arm band 15, and an interconnecting chain or cord29 (Fig. 1).

The trolley member 16 comprises a pair of interconnected and opposinghooks 16a and 161) which embrace opposite edges 14c and 14d,respectively, of the guide rail 14 in such a manner that the trolleymember can move freely along the guide rail. In the form shown in Figs.l-4, the guide rail 14 extends slightly spaced from and parallel to atangent to the belt 10, as viewed in Fig. 2, and, as viewed in Fig. 1,curves from the pivot 17 upwardly. That is, the guide rail 14 is arcuatein conformation when viewed in side elevation, as in Fig. 1.

The spacing means 18 and 19 (Fig. 2) hold the guide rail slightly spacedfrom the belt and thereby preventing the trolley member 16 from engagingthe belt 10 whereby such trolley member can move freely, during theupswing, from extremity 14a to 14b and in reverse during the down-swing.

The guide rail 14 at the upper extremity 14b, by virtue of itsV-formation with arm 23, comprises a limit-stop to prevent movement ofthe trolley member 16 therebeyond. However, the guide rail is free ofsuch limit-stop at the lower extremity 14a.

The form of the invention shown in Figs. 6 and 7 is substantiallyidentical to that shown in Figs. 1-4 with the exception that the guiderail 14 (Figs. 6 and 7), when viewed from above, curves arcuately towardthe rear of the belt. Guide rail 14 also extends arcuately toward theupper extremity 14b in a manner analogous to that shown in Fig. l forthe guide rail 14, and is pivotally mounted at 17.

In operation, the belt is fixed to the waist of the player, I

as shown in Fig. 5. The arm band 15 encircles the right arm of theplayer slightly above the elbow. On the upswing of the arms the path ofmovement of the right elbow relative to the waist is limited in apreselected manner by means of the band 15, the trolley member 16interconnected thereto by the chain 29 and the guide rail 14, the devicepermitting free angular movement rearwardly subject to theaforementioned restraint. Furthermore, said arm restraining means 14,15, 16, 29 at the upper extremity of the back-swing, will prevent thelift of the elbow beyond a preselected point as a result of the trolleymember coming against the limit-stop at extremity 14b. Thus excessiveraising of the right arm is avoided thereby tending to cause the playerto pivot his body as a whole about the axis of the spinal column to agreater extent than otherwise would be done during the up-swing.Furthermore, excessive movement of the right elbow away from the waistis restrained and, as viewed in Fig. 5a, a desired angle 30 is producednear or at the top of the up-swing. It is, of course, understood thatsuch angle progressively changes from the inception of the upswing tothe termination thereof.- However, the variation of this angle ispreselected during the up-swing by means of the present device. Alsosuch variation during the down-swing can be preselected by the samemeans.

During the down-swing the trolley member 16 rides freely along the guiderail 14 and moves off thereof at the extremity 14a in such a manner thatthe followthrough stroke is unimpeded thereby. The follow-through strokethus is performed, as shown in Fig. 5d, in the usual manner but isassisted by the guiding device in that the prior back and down swingsare guided in a novel manner.

It should be recalled, however, that a position restraint upon the elbowof the player does not arise unless such elbow moves out of apreselected swing region or path.

The guide rail 14, when the belt is properly positioned, follows a pathwhich is substantially a constant distance from the right shouldersocket.

There is thus provided a novel device for guiding the primary elbow of agolf player during the back and down strokes of the swing whereby suchelbow is constrained to move in a preselected path and the angularvariation of the right arm to the torso is governed in a predeterminedmanner. Furthermore, the novel device is provided with a guide railwhich is angularly adjustable about a pivot intermediate the extremitiesof such rail in such a manner that the device may be easily adjusted toan individual player. For example, the extremity 23a of the arm 23 maybe lowered to the lowermost and innermost perforation 26 in order toprevent an excessive uplift of the right elbow.

While the invention has been described with respect to certain preferredexamples which have given satisfactory results, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art, after understanding the invention, thatvarious changes and modifications may be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention and it is intended, therefore, in theappended claims to cover all such changes and modifications.

What is claimed is:

1. In a harness for the use of golf players, the combination with a beltadapted to encircle the body of a player, of a relatively rigid guiderail secured to said belt in spaced relation thereto, the guide railextending upwardly from a reference plane formed by said belt when inuse, said guide rail also extending substantially tangentially to thebelt when in use, one extremity of such rail being positioned in theforward central region of the belt when in use and extending therefromtoward one side thereof; said guide rail over a substantial portion ofthe length thereof being so positioned relative to said belt as to besubstantially in such reference plane; a trolley hook connected to andmovable upon said guide rail; and an arm band secured to said trolleyhook and for encircling one of the arms of the golf player; said guiderail having a trolley hook limit-stop at the upper extremity thereof andbeing free of said limit-stop at such forward central extremity thereof,said arm band and trolley hook being interconnected by cord means of aselected relatively short length for restricting a portion of such armof the golf player to movement in a selected zone during the down swingonly, such zone being substantially coextensive in length to that 'ofsuch guide rail, said trolley hook thereby being free to ride off theguide rail at the termination of the down swing thereby to allow a freefollow-through.

2. In a golf stroke guiding harness to be worn by golf players, thecombination comprising: abelt for encircling the body of the player whenin use, said belt when so encircling the body defining a referenceplane; a substantially rigid guide rail secured to such belt, said guiderail commencing substantially in the plane of said belt and extendingupwardly therefrom and outwardly from the side of the belt when so inuse; means for restricting the swing path of one of the elbows of theplayer with respect to such guide rail, including an arm band member forencircling such arm and a trolley hook connected to such band member,such trolley book being connected to, slidable along and restricted tofollow said guide rail in a selected path, the latter having alimit-stop at its upper extremity but being free of. such limit-stop atits lower extremity, said trolley hook thus being free to move off saidguide rail when such hook is moved to the lower extremity thereof, saidarm band and trolley book being interconnected by cord means of, aselected relatively short length whereby such elbow is guided during thedown swing in a selected zone substantially coextensive with the zone ofsaid guide rail, the free movement oil said guide rail by said trolleyhook allowing free follow-through of the swing of the golf player.

3. In a harness for use by golf players, the combination comprising: abelt for forming substantially a circle when in use, a substantiallyrigid guide rail secured to said belt and extending outwardly therefromin a substantially tangential direction when the belt is in use, atleast a substantial portion of said guide rail also extending in anupward direction when in use whereby the lower extremity of said guiderail secured to said belt is positionable substantially beneath the chinat waist level when addressing the ball, the guide rail thence incliningupwardly and extending to the side of the player; swing path restrictingmeans for cooperation with said guide rail comprising a loop memberthrough which one of the arms of the player can extend, and a trolleyhook slidably engaging said guide rail, said loop member and trolleybook being interconnected by relatively short interconnecting meansthereby to guide such elbow during the down swing in a selected zonesubstantially co-extensive with the zone of said guide rail,

said guide rail having a limit-stop at the upper extremity thereof toprevent said trolley hook from moving off of said guide rail at saidextremity, such guide rail being free of such limit-stop at the lowerextremity thereof, such hook thus being movable off of such guide railduring the ensuing golf stroke thereby to allow free follow-throughafter the termination of a down swing, the zone of guidance for suchloop being substantially co-extensive with such guide rail.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,591,524 Full-er July 6, 1926 1,699,219 Bemish et al Jan. 15, 19292,093,153 McCarthy Sept. 14, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS 522,814 Great BritainA. D. 1940

